Gunnison building permits

Building department

Address

City Municipal Building, 201 W. Virginia Ave., PO Box 239, Gunnison, CO 81230

Phone

970.641.8151

Email

building@gunnisonco.gov (Building Office); ejansen@gunnisonco.gov (Eric Jansen, Building Official)

Office hours

Building Official: Eric Jansen, 970.641.8151 (fax/cell 970.209.0988). Electrical and plumbing permits/inspections for property within City limits are NOT handled by this office — they are administered directly by the State of Colorado: Local State Electrical Inspector Dustin Behounek, 303.869.3451; Local State Plumbing Inspector Andy Clark, 303.869.3471; state permit portal https://dpo.colorado.gov/EandP/Permits.

Website

Official site

Permit portal

Apply online at Gunnison's portal

Inspection guide

See how inspections work in Gunnison — sequence, scheduling & re-inspection fees.

Codes adopted

Colorado has no statewide-mandated building code edition. Under the Colorado Constitution's home-rule provisions (art. XX, home rule for municipalities since 1902; home rule for counties since 1970), building codes and zoning are an enumerated home-rule charter power, so cities and counties adopt and amend their own construction codes independently — predominantly the I-Codes, with editions and local amendments varying by jurisdiction. The one statewide floor is for energy: HB22-1362 (2022) created the Energy Code Board (jointly appointed by the Colorado Energy Office and the Department of Local Affairs) and requires that, on or after July 1, 2023 and before July 1, 2026, any municipality or county that adopts or updates a building code must adopt and enforce an energy code achieving performance equivalent to or better than the 2021 IECC together with the board's Model Electric Ready and Solar Ready Code (which includes electric-ready, EV-ready, and solar-ready provisions); from July 1, 2026 onward the floor shifts to the board's Model Low Energy and Carbon Code or an equivalent. Electrical and plumbing permitting defaults to the Colorado State Electrical Board and State Plumbing Board (within DORA's Division of Professions and Occupations) — the state issues permits and inspects statewide except in counties/jurisdictions that operate their own certified Electrical or Plumbing Inspection Program, in which case the local program has authority instead. Always confirm the currently adopted code edition, local amendments, and inspection authority (state board vs. local program) with the specific jurisdiction before submitting plans.

• International Building Code (IBC), 2021 Edition, including Appendix Chapters E, I, J, and the Errata to the IBC, First Printing, October 2020 — adopted by the City of Gunnison Municipal Code, Chapter 14.10 'Building Code of the City of Gunnison' (Ord. 9-2022 § 2), per eCode360 (ecode360.com/47882243).
• International Residential Code (IRC), 2021 Edition, including Appendix Chapters AE, AF, AG, AH, AJ, AL, AQ, AR, AS, AT [RE], AU, and the Errata to the IRC, First Printing, January 2021 — adopted by Chapter 14.10, per eCode360.
• International Energy Conservation Code (IECC), 2021 Edition, including Appendix Chapter RB, First Printing, September 2021 — adopted as the 'Energy Conservation Code of the City of Gunnison' per City of Gunnison Municipal Code, Title 14, per eCode360 search indexing (ecode360.com/47882242, GU4469 Table of Contents).
• International Mechanical Code (IMC), 2021 Edition, including Appendix Chapter A, First Printing, September 2021 — adopted by City of Gunnison Municipal Code, Chapter 14.20 'Mechanical Code', per eCode360 indexing.
• Title 14 Technical Codes also contains a Chapter 14.30 'Fire Code' and a Chapter 14.40 'Property Maintenance Code', per the eCode360 Table of Contents (GU4469). No adopted Fire Code edition year is recorded here: that chapter's text renders client-side on ecode360.com, so open it in an ordinary web browser to read the edition in force.
• Electrical and plumbing work within City limits is regulated under state-adopted National Electrical Code (NEC) and plumbing code editions and is administered directly by the State of Colorado (Division of Professions… Show full textShow less

  Electrical and plumbing work within City limits is regulated under state-adopted National Electrical Code (NEC) and plumbing code editions and is administered directly by the State of Colorado (Division of Professions and Occupations, Electrical and Plumbing Boards) rather than by a City-adopted Title 14 chapter — per the City's Building & Sign Permits page and Building Department page, which each list a 'Local State Electrical Inspector' and 'Local State Plumbing Inspector' in place of a City electrical/plumbing permitting process.

Permit types & fees

• Building Permit

  Required for construction, enlargement, alteration, repair, moving, demolition, or change of occupancy of a building or structure within City of Gunnison limits, per the 2021 IBC/IRC as adopted and locally amended in Municipal Code Chapter 14.10. Issued and reviewed directly by the City's own Building Office (Community Development Department) — Gunnison County has no jurisdiction within City limits and there is no joint city-county building authority. This is the City's single UNIFIED permit for both residential (IRC) and commercial/multi-family (IBC) construction, including tenant improvements: neither the City's Building & Sign Permits page, the Community Development Applications & Forms page, nor the Jan. 1, 2026 Fee Table publishes a separate commercial building permit application, commercial permit type, or tenant-improvement permit. Commercial projects use the same Building Permit application and the same valuation-based Appendix L fee brackets, differing only in fee INPUTS — a 2.30% Regional Building Valuation Multiplier per sq ft versus 1.60% residential, a 65% Plan Review Fee versus 30% under the IRC, and a $600 pre-application Site Development Review tier versus $300.

  See fee schedule→

• Commercial Building Permit (New Construction, Additions, Remodels & Tenant Improvement)

  Reviewed under the same City of Gunnison Building Permit that covers all occupancies — the City publishes no separate commercial application, commercial permit type, or tenant-improvement permit. Commercial and multi-family projects are reviewed against the 2021 IBC as adopted and locally amended in Municipal Code Chapter 14.10 (Ordinance No. 9, Series 2022, Section 2), issued directly by the City's own Building Office; Gunnison County has no jurisdiction inside City limits. What differs from residential IRC projects is the fee inputs: a 2.30% Regional Building Valuation Multiplier per square foot versus 1.60% residential, a Plan Review Fee of 65% of the building permit fee versus 30% under the IRC, and a $600 Preliminary Site Development Review pre-application tier for 3+ unit residential and commercial projects versus $300 for 1-2 unit residential — all per the Community Development, Building and Planning Fee Table effective January 1, 2026.

  From$1.00valuation-based→

• Sign Permit

  Required for all signs erected within the City of Gunnison. Signs placed within the public right-of-way additionally require a separate License Agreement with the City. Sign standards are set out in the City's Land Development Code, Section 4.8.

  From$60.00→

• Mechanical Permit

  Required for installation, alteration, or replacement of mechanical systems (HVAC, furnaces, boilers, evaporative coolers, etc.) within City of Gunnison limits, under the City-adopted 2021 International Mechanical Code (Chapter 14.20), except for the specific mechanical work items listed as exempt in the City's 'Do I Need a Building Permit?' guide (e.g., portable heating/cooling/ventilation appliances, minor part replacement, self-contained refrigeration systems ≤10 lbs refrigerant).

  $22.00→

• Mobile Home Permit

  Required for mobile/manufactured home placement within City of Gunnison limits, listed as a distinct application on the City's Community Development Applications & Forms page, separate from the general Building Permit Application.

  See fee schedule→

• Solar Photovoltaic (PV) Permit

  Required for installation of rooftop or ground-mount solar photovoltaic systems within Gunnison city limits, reviewed by the City's own Community Development Department, Building Office under the 2021 IBC/IRC (Chapter 14.10). No standalone solar/photovoltaic fee line exists on the City's Community Development, Building and Planning Fee Table — a solar installation is billed under the general valuation-based Base Building Permit Fee (2021 Permit Fee Schedule Appendix L, Ordinance No. 9, Series 2022) plus the applicable Plan Review Fee percentage. Electrical interconnection work is separately permitted and inspected by the State of Colorado, not the City, consistent with Gunnison's general electrical carve-out.

  From$69.00valuation-based→

• EV Charger / Electric Vehicle Charging Station Permit

  Installing an EV charger circuit in Gunnison is electrical work, and under the City's general electrical carve-out, documented on the Building & Sign Permits page, electrical permits and inspections within City limits are administered directly by the State of Colorado (DORA Division of Professions and Occupations, Electrical Board) rather than the City. The City does not issue or fee-assess electrical permits at all, so there is no City fee line for EV chargers. A City of Gunnison Building Permit is required in addition only if the installation includes new structural work, such as a carport or accessory structure to house the charger, billed under the City's general valuation-based Base Building Permit Fee — the same mechanism that covers solar racking.

  See fee schedule→

• Fire Sprinkler / Fire Alarm System Permit

  Fire protection in Gunnison is provided by the Gunnison Volunteer Fire Department (201 W Virginia Ave, 970-641-8153), whose Fire Marshal enforces fire codes, conducts fire and mechanical inspections, and investigates fires within city limits. No dedicated fire-sprinkler/alarm permit application, fee schedule, or review-timeline figure distinct from the general City Building & Sign Permits process was located on the City's website as of the last verification — the Building & Sign Permits page confirms that building occupancy is not granted until City utilities (water, sewer, electrical) are functional, but does not itemize fire-system permitting separately.

  See fee schedule→

• Change of Use / Change of Occupancy

  Gunnison County (the surrounding jurisdiction, administratively distinct from the City) requires a building permit to change the occupancy of a building or structure, per Colorado state regulation. Within City of Gunnison limits specifically, the City publishes no standalone 'change of use' application distinct from the general Building & Sign Permits process; the City's Building & Sign Permits page confirms building occupancy is withheld until City utilities (water, sewer, electrical) are in place and functional. No City-specific adopted International Existing Building Code (IEBC) edition is confirmed for Gunnison (see codesAdopted).

  See fee schedule→

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